Dean Smith believes that Philipp Hofmann is not looking to end his Brentford nightmare and return to Germany.

The German striker has only made five appearances for the Bees this season, playing just 36 minutes in the Championship and 77 in the EFL Cup defeat at Exeter.

His first season at Griffin Park was beset by injuries and his hopes of showing fans the real Philipp Hofmann have not been realised.

However, Smith insisted he still considers the 23-year-old an integral part of the squad.

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He said: “It's the same situation with Hoff as it is with Kersch. If he expresses a desire to go elsewhere it'd be something we'd have to consider but nobody has done so yet.”

The reason Hofmann hasn't featured as much as he would have liked to is because of the role Scott Hogan has in the side as the lone striker.

Smith said earlier this month: “He's working hard and he needs to keep doing that to get into the team. Scott's doing what is asked of him, and with us playing just one striker at the moment, it's tough for him or Lasse (Vibe) to get that shirt.

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“I just think Scott's a goal scorer first and foremost, and if you play someone up with Scott, they might get in the way of the runs he makes. But it's something we haven't ruled out, and there's been times in training we've looked at playing two up.

“I believe Philipp should be pushing Scotty more, and that's what I've been telling him. We know they're two different players – Scott makes runs in behind whereas Philipp likes it up to feet.

“We're working on him making more runs into the box so he can score more goals.”

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